He Said, She Said. Who Is Presumed to Be Credible?

When I do workshops about gender bias, one of several forms we explore is how the masculine voice carries a presumption of credibility. The feminine voice – or, let’s just say, women – must earn credibility (prove it). All this noise about domestic violence brings together two forms of gender bias. The uglier form is spousal violence (a form of violence against women). The subtler form is the one I explore: the presumption that he is telling the truth, and she is merely “making allegations.” The fact that “he denied it” is confused with the fact that he didn’t do it. Now, as a lawyer, I know about due process. But domestic violence and sexual harassment rarely get to a judicial conclusion. An allegation is not proof of guilt. But to automatically believe him and discount her just compounds the injustice and screams of bias. Sad.